Ornamental stay for shoes



ORNAMENTAL STAY FOR SHOES Jan. 26, 1943 Filed Jan. 21, 1941 1f/%W e6 wwifwi'gwaqzgzz.

Patented Jan. 26, 1943 UNETED "STATES PATENT 'OFFHQE ORNAMWTAL STAY FOR SHOES Application January 21, 1941, Serial No. 375,308

1 Claim.

Our invention relates to shoemaking and consists in a novel and ornamental reinforcing stay particularly adapted for use with footwear of the moccasin type. The invention also includes Within its scope the process of making the stay.

There is a strong demand for shoes ornamented with moccasin seams located in the rear of the shoe as well as in the forepart of the vamp. Methods and machines for introducing moccasin seams into the forepart of the vamp are Wellknown, but there has been no simple method heretofore available for incorporating a moccasin seam in a stay. Work of this kind has only been done laboriously by hand and has therefore been expensive and not adapted for a commercial scale of manufacture.

One object of our invention is to provide a simple, inexpensive process of making a shoe stay having an ornamental moccasin seam, which process is capable of being carried out entirely by mechanical means.

An important feature of our invention is that the stay is made from a single piece of leather or other suitable upper stock, although in finished form it has the appearance of two pieces sewn together. The use of a single blank eliminates the task of accurately registering two separate pieces before sewing them together.

Another feature of the invention is that the seam is made in the stay and not in the upper, with the result that the upper is left perfectly smooth on the inside of the shoe next the foot of the wearer.

An advantage resulting from the use of the stay of my invention comes from the fact that the seam gives transverse reinforcement to the rear of the shoe and makes it possible to eliminate the expense of other counter stiffening elements.

These and other objects and features of our invention will be more readily understood and appreciated from the following detailed description of a preferred embodiment thereof selected for purposes of illustration and shown in the accompanying drawing in which,

Fi 1 is a view in elevation of a scored blank for the stay prior to the folding and stitching operations,

Fig. 2 is a View of the stay in cross section along the line 2--2 of Fig. 3,

Fig. 3 is a view in elevation of a stay which has been stitched,

Fig. 4 is a view in elevation of the rear portion of a shoe showing the application of a finished stay to a shoe, and

edge of the upper.

Fig. 5 is a view in cross-section along the line 55 of Fig. 4.

As herein shown, the first step in the process of our invention is to cut out a blank II) of leather or other suitable upper stock. The blank herein shown has roughly the shape of a triangle, having a narrow upper portion defined by concave side edges and a relatively Wide base with side edges that merge into those of the upper portion through oppositely disposed concave side edges. A V-shaped recess I6 is cut in the base which enables proper registration of the blank when assembled with an upper of the shoe. A shallow, narrow slit I2 is cut or scored in the outer or grain surface of the stay I B and extends transversely across the entire width of the base portion between the concave portions of its side edges. The stay In is then folded along the line of the slit I2, with the slit defining the apex of the fold. If the stay is of leather, the flesh side is folded inwardly. While the stay is thus folded it is presented to a sewing machine which stitches the folds together along a line adjacent and parallel to the slit I2. The stitches are indicated at I4 in the drawing. The stay I0 is then unfolded and presents the appearance illustrated in Figs. 2 and 3, that is to say, the folding and stitching operations cause the slit I2 to open out and become wider, which makes it appear as if the stay were formed of two members sewn together and the material on both sides of the slit converges to an apex.

The stitches I4 and the slit I2 are then coated with dressing of a suitable color and ironed to make a harmonious blend with the color of the material of the stay I0. If the stay is made of leather, it will be apparent that the slit I2 would have a raw appearance which the dressing and ironing would cure. After the seam has thus been treated, small marks or indentations I8 are pressed transversely of the stitches I4 and the slit I2, resulting in a pleasing ornamental effect and giving the seam an appearance of having been hand sewn.

The completed stay I2 is registered with the back seam of an upper 20 by means of the recess I5 and is then sewn to the counterposition, as suggested in Figs. 4 and 5, a line of stitching 22 extending along the margin of the stay. The top of the stay may be caught in under a conventional binding 23 following the edge of the upper as shown or may be folded over the top The upper 20 is lasted to an insole 24 and secured in position by tacks 25. An outsole 28 is secured to the heel seat of the shoe as by nails 21. Subsequently a heel is attached by the usual heel nails 30.

The stay of our invention may take other shapes and may be attached to any desired portion of the upper. It is to be noted that the foregoing description is an example of one application of the invention, and the scope thereof is to be measured by the claim hereto appended. The moccasin seam l4 ofier a pleasant, ru ged ornament for a shoe and also provides reinforcement, particularly when used as a back stay. The stitching causes a gathering of the stay, which lends itself to the crowned vertical contour of the back of the shoe and facilitates lasting.

Having thus disclosed our invention and described one embodiment thereof, we claim as new and desire to secure by Letters Patent of the United States:

An ornamental back stay for a shoe, comprising a leather blank having a tapering upper portion merging through concave side walls into a relatively Wide lower portion, the leather being slitted in its outer surface between the concave side walls and having a line of stitching extending across the slit on the inner surface of the stay and holding the leather on both sides of the slitin converging relation.

WILLIAM T. FRAHER. CHARLES B. SLATER. 

